|
I absolutely don't recommend this project unless you're truly proficient at
soldering and desoldering,
and have an overriding reason that precludes taking
the easy way out instead.
|
Background
Having purchased a Soyo® BayOne Extreme™ front panel,
I set about cutting it up
to make it useable with a standard sound card. Having completed that
project successfully, I turned to the next problem - the BayOne is a USB hog.
Now, I don't want to get off on a rant here -- yes, I do. Bad engineering
disturbs me no end. Be a design engineer for a moment and see what you
think. You know the following things:
-
The BayOne cabling will use pin sockets.
-
USB pin headers are normally found only on motherboards.
-
The potential market consists of more than just Soyo motherboards.
-
The BayOne will contain a card reader and three USB sockets.
-
Motherboards have a maximum of four USB pin headers, and some only have two.
-
Most PC cases have two USB sockets up front.
-
Each case USB socket connects to one of the motherboard USB pin headers.
Question: Is there a problem here a one-eyed drunken pangolin could see?
Answer: You bet there is, and that's why most front panels containing card readers and
multiple USB sockets incorporate an on-board USB hub.
I personally found it physically impossible to plug four cables into two headers already
occupied by the case USB sockets.
Reviewing what happened next ex post facto, I can only say that
at that point something went drastically wrong with my thinking.
What I should have thought was this:
(The Easy Way)
-
Cut the green pin sockets off the BayOne cables 4" from the end.
-
Save the pin sockets and cable stubs for future use.
-
Cut two cheap ($1) USB plug-to-plug cables in half.
-
Splice the color-coded USB half-cable wires to the color-coded BayOne half-cable wires.
-
Plug black sockets of resulting cables into the BayOne per instruction booklet.
-
Insert USB plugs of resulting cables into a cheap ($4) self-powered USB hub.
-
Plug the USB hub into one of the back panel USB sockets.
That's what I should have thought. In the event, what I did think
was this:
(The Unnecessarily Difficult Way)
-
Buy a cheap ($4) self-powered USB hub.
-
Open the hub and extract the PCB.
-
Desolder the USB sockets.
-
Install pin headers in the PCB pads previously occupied by the USB sockets.
-
Figure out which pin header corresponds to which USB signal.
-
Plug BayOne cable green sockets into the pin headers per instruction booklet.
-
Hope the sockets are aligned correctly so the smoke doesn't get out
of the hub's IC.
-
Plug BayOne cable black sockets into the BayOne per instruction booklet.
-
Reassemble the USB hub.
-
Plug the USB hub into one of the back panel USB sockets.
While this can be done, after trying it once I'm strongly against it.
This page is here primarily to advise you to do it the easy way.
If you're short pin headers to connect a BayOne, take the easy way out
instead and modify the cables, not the hub!
Equipment Required
-
Soldering iron with micro-chisel tip
-
Vacuum desoldering tool
-
VOM, DVM or continuity tester
-
Experience soldering and desoldering
The Conversion
|
|
From here on out, explanations and commentary are limited. It is
expected that you are aware of what you're getting into, which is probably
a pile of trouble.
|
|
One of two USB cables supplied with Soyo®
BayOne™
front panel. Connecting the BayOne this way uses four of the (usually four)
USB headers on the motherboard.
|
|
|
| |
|
Top view of the four-port USB hub. It is powered by the USB connection,
so the DC current available at the sockets is limited. This is not a
problem as only the BayOne will plug into it.
|
|
|
| |
|
Bottom view of the hub. To get at the screws, carefully remove
the three white pads covering the screw wells.
|
|
|
| |
|
The PCB assembly. The four USB sockets are obvious.
|
|
|
| |
|
The bottom of the PCB assembly.
|
|
|
| |
|
The bottom of the PCB assembly with the USB socket pads highlighted.
Take your meter and check which USB socket pin goes to which PCB pad now
and write it down, thus preventing the smoke from getting out of the
single IC later on.
|
|
|
The next step is to remove the USB sockets by completely desoldering the pads.
This is where things started to go wrong and convinced me -- too late -- that this
was not a good approach. During desoldering, one of the pads lifted and
tore, leaving only three of the pad sets useable.
While soldering the pin headers into the PCB pads, another problem popped up.
Although the spacing of the PCB pads looks like it is the same spacing as the
pin headers, it is not. The outer pads are spaced slightly farther apart.
The solution? There isn't any. I had to force the pin headers into
the pad vias. At least there was no problem with the pin headers falling
out.
At some point in the process, flipping the PCB over and back numerous times
caused the incoming USB black wire to break. This caused no small amount
of hearty commentary while trying to locate that problem.
The final result was that I connected the three cables driving the BayOne's USB
sockets to the hub, and had to cut up the cable driving the card reader
and install a USB plug on it à la
the easy way. I ended up using up both of the back
panel USB sockets instead of one. It would have been much faster,
simpler, and a lot more reliable to do it the easy way in the first place.
Well, you live and -- if you're lucky -- you learn.
Don't try this at home. We have professional 'tards to do things
you shouldn't.
The statements expressed in this document are opinions, either professional
or personal, of the author.
Company and product names appearing here are used only
for identification, and remain the trade-marks, service marks, or intellectual
property, as applicable under law, of their respective owners.
They have no business, personal, or other connection with this site, its
hosting ISP, or its maintainer. Their appearance here
implies neither approval nor disapproval, neither recommendation nor
condemnation. YMMV.
| 
